The global liquefied natural gas (LNG) sector has been hit by supply overhang followed by COVID-19-induced economic slowdown and lower demand worldwide.
British Petroleum has pushed the timeline for its Tortue FLNG project from 2020 to 2023 in response to the COVID-19 impact.
Haseeb Ahmed, oil and gas analyst at GlobalData, commented, “Due to the sharp fall in oil prices, spread between oil-indexed long-term LNG contracts and spot contracts have considerably reduced. This can make it challenging for LNG producers to meet their revenue targets. In addition, a rapid decline in gas demand is affecting financing of capital-intensive new liquefaction projects, leading to inordinate delays and capex reductions.”
To keep a check on spends, several operators are delaying their upcoming LNG projects. Operators are reducing their expenditures for 2020 as a measure to counter the impacts of COVID-19. Woodside Energy and Exxon Mobil have resorted to downsizing their capex by 60 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, for 2020.
Source: OilReviewAfrica via CrudeMix
